Originally posted by rosethecopycat
My father was 'actively dying' for 11 days. Tough guy.


Rose
Oh Rose!! I pm'd you about this! I am going to need calm prayers if this is the case. I had no idea the active phase could last this long.

For the rest of you "active" means the body is naturally shutting down - begins with kidneys and bowels - they stop working. Extremities mottle - or turn purplish - become cold and without circulation -from fingertips/toes and then upwards towards the body. The body dies from the farthest points from the heart inward. There is usually no pulse, even with a doplar, except at the carotid. The brain is the very last so the person may appear comatose with no pain response but they still can hear and process everything that happens and is said around them. They do not eat or drink. They must be turned often. Finally, the breaths stop for longer amounts of time (Cheyne-Stokes breathing) then start again - often with a gasp. Eventually, the heart simply stops beating.